


our common goal was waiting for the world to end

by AdurnaSkulblaka



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Grand Theft Auto AU, M/M, Michael's Heist, Revenge, Suicide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-01
Updated: 2014-06-01
Packaged: 2018-01-27 20:29:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,577
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1721588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AdurnaSkulblaka/pseuds/AdurnaSkulblaka
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The moment Ryan hears Ray's scream, he knows it's over.</p>
            </blockquote>





	our common goal was waiting for the world to end

The moment Ryan hears Ray's scream, he knows it's over. It's quick and should, theoretically, be painless - the crack of a gun, his sharp cry, the thud of his body hitting the asphalt.

Theoretically, Ryan shouldn't care. He shouldn't give a damn that his partner - assigned, but there's so many other meanings to the word now that it makes Ryan's head spin to consider them all - has just been killed on the job. He should keep giving covering fire to the helicopter overhead so _it_ can keep giving covering fire to the fleeing Michael and Gavin. 

But he does, Jesus Christ, does he care. It feels like Ryan was shot by the same bullet that killed Ray, like it's lodged between his ribs so close to his beating heart, but not close enough to end him, too. 

Ray's yell echoes in his ears. His head rings with one word over and over - _no no no no no_. It's a good thing that Ryan's used to working on instinct now, because his body moves for him, continuing to protect him even though he isn't sure if he wants to be protected anymore. 

What is there without Ray? No one else in this damned crew had quite the right sense of humour, or ever forgave him when he tried to double-cross them. Maybe it was stupid of Ray to trust him even after he turned his own gun on him, but Christ, did it make Ryan feel better for it, in a weird way. He felt accepted, and that wasn't anything he had in the crew most of the time. The others were always wary of him, waiting for him to turn. 

Not Ray. Ray was wary, certainly, but he didn't show it, and that was refreshing. 

That's been ripped away now, and Ryan sees red. 

His first instinct is to unleash hell upon the police force here, but he quickly casts that idea aside. He also wants to move Ray's body, clean off the blood and patch up the wound so he looks almost like he did before all of this shit went down. He wishes he'd had more time to savour their odd working relationship, one filled with equal measures of passion from both sides of the line: threats and sex. 

He can't. He won't even get to say anything to Ray, because even from feet away Ryan can see that the light has left his eyes, the life in him leaked out through the hole in his head alongside his blood.

There's only one person the blame can be placed on for this. The person who arranged this heist, the one that Ryan suspected of corruption from the very beginning. 

_"Should you survive..."_

_"Ray and Ryan, God bless their souls, should they survive..."_

_"Everyone will die anyway..."_

At the time, it had been a joke. Now, Ryan can't stop thinking of the words Michael had said that had implied his true intentions. _Should you survive._

He thinks that it was Michael's plan to kill him and Ray off from the beginning. Hell, maybe Geoff and Kerry are at risk too. Really, the only person left in the crew that's safe is Gavin; Michael might double-cross everyone as bad as Ryan had, but he would never do it to Gavin. His desire to keep Gavin alive is true, Ryan knows that. 

The only thing on his mind is revenge. Revenge for the crew member he's already lost - the one that meant more to him than anyone else in this city - and the ones that he might lose yet. Geoff and Kerry are at risk, Jack too when he makes it out of lock-down. 

If Michael still plans on making it out on a boat, Ryan doesn't have much time. 

He doesn't know how long he's been standing beside Ray's body. It's a miracle that his instincts have kept him alive this long; he can't hear the chopper's blades anymore, though, so he knows that things have moved on. 

He can't bear to look at Ray, so he leaves him there for the cops. It's the last thing he wants to do with him, but he has something that needs to be done. The intercom continues to buzz, the chip in his ear giving him the statuses of his fellows, but he stays silent, feigning death at the hands of Michael's plan. 

He jacks a car, a fancy one because he needs the speed. Ryan knows the plan, knows where everyone is meant to be at what time, so he knows that his best bet is to wait at the beach Michael and Gavin would meet Geoff and Kerry at, so he turns and floors it. 

The car is too flashy when the cops know him. In a last ditch attempt to make himself less recognisable, Ryan rips off his mask and tosses it into the backseat without looking. His clothing - that matches Ray's, he remembers with a pang - is memorable, however, but there's nothing that can be done about that. Time is of the essence. If he has any chance of saving some part of his crew and getting the revenge his soul sings for, then he needs to move fast. 

The beach is quiet when he arrives. The waves lap at the shore and gulls cry overhead, wings flaring at the sharp roar of the car's engine that quickly dies. Ryan wastes no time in hopping out, seizing his gun as he goes. He makes for the rocks, aiming to settle in to wait. It gives him a perfect view of the bay and the sea beyond it. 

He has just enough time to set himself up comfortably when he hears Geoff, both in his ear and in the bay. He's been so focused on the water that he hadn't noticed Geoff and Kerry arriving, nor the moment when they took a boat. Ryan pays closer attention now, barely moving. 

"Guys, I think, all things considered, that went really well," Geoff says. Ryan smiles bitterly through the agreements of the crew, but the smirk becomes real when Geoff adds, "At this point, uh, this'd be the point where Ryan was tryin' to kill us now anyway." 

_Not you,_ he thinks. _Not now. Not yet. Just Michael._

He's content to wait. 

It pays off when he sees the boats meet. He watches as Geoff and Kerry dive from theirs, swim across to the other, and clamber aboard. They settle into the seats on the back before Michael drives them away, Gavin standing precariously on the nose of the boat. The explosion further down the bay startles all of them, Ryan included, but he doesn't have to wait long for an explanation. 

Michael doesn't even try to hide his aims when he begins talking, which is when Ryan knows with bitter satisfaction that he was right all along. 

"As expected, Ryan and Ray died horribly..." 

Ryan bares his teeth in a grin, peering into the scope to track Michael. _Oh, if only you knew._

"... but, uh, yeah, you guys were supposed to die too, in that boat. And _somebody_ fucked it up." 

He's too slow on the draw to save Geoff and Kerry. Before he can get a good, solid, single-shot-kill aim on Michael, he's already firing on the deck of their four-seater boat. It's like fish in a barrel for someone like Michael; Geoff and Kerry are in the water, unable to defend themselves as Michael picks them off. Gavin's gargling cries fizz in Ryan's ears as he tries to flee, fearing for his own life despite Michael's reassurances. 

"Gavin you're safe, come back here." 

"But-" 

"No, you're safe, come back." 

Yes, Gavin is safe, but Michael is not. It's the best shot he's going to get. Ryan suspects that the person who blew the boat is Lindsay, hidden away in the cliffs, but he doesn't have the time to check and clear the space. She'll have Gavin to deal with anyway. 

Ryan takes the shot. 

Michael's voice cuts off in the chip, a choked sound as he topples into the water. Gavin shrieks a heartfelt _"Michael!"_ at the same time Ryan hears a similar shout from the rocks - Lindsay, just as he thought. 

She's a smart girl. Ryan tosses his gun down onto the sand as she appears from behind the rocks, hair frazzled and expression grief-stricken. Her features twist, showing her rage as she raises the pistol at her side. 

Ryan doesn't try to stop her. He's got his satisfaction. Maybe he should have killed Gavin or Lindsay instead so Michael would know the pain of losing one of the people he loves, but they're both innocents. Gavin is, anyway; Ryan could never bring himself to shoot him. Maybe he could have taken out Lindsay, but either way, it's too late. 

He sees the gun in her hand, pointed at him, and he doesn't try to stop it - hell, he doesn't _want_ to stop it. 

The crack of a gun. A wordless cry. A thump as a body hits the ground. 

This time, it's Ryan. It's a relief that there's a bullet lodged in his chest now, like there is in Ray's. His knees hit the ground, and he's smiling when his cheek thumps into the sand. He was never under any impression that there'd be any other end for him. He's just glad he managed to get revenge first.

It shouldn't have been necessary.


End file.
